Southwest Nassau
Statistics
First Quarter, 2010 |
Overall Vacancy Rate: 13.8%
|
Sq. Ft. Surveyed: 1,620,000
|
Average Base Rent: $25.31
(plus tenant electricity)
|
Essentially a self-contained market, Southwest Nassau's tenant base is drawn from local professionals living within the immediate area. Companies servicing JFK Airport are also heavily represented in the tenant mix.
The convenient "home to office" commute sustains the demand for this market's office space, which is reflected by rents that are higher than what might otherwise be expected for a comparatively older office building inventory.
Even though this market is well served by the Long Island Railroad, its transportation infrastructure predates the post-WWII automobile boom and is thereby not as automobile-friendly as most other Island markets. With virtually all of its developable land having been absorbed years ago, there has been and will be very little new office building development. Additional inventory may come on-line via office conversion projects, but they will be comparatively small scale.
Current Market Conditions:
Small business continues to be the victim of the recession. We can say this because the tenant base for southwest Nassau is primarily small business and, when compared to a year ago, this submarket's vacancy rate has jumped to 13.8% from 11.8%. On the other hand, rental rates have stabilized at $25.31, evidence that proximity to "home" for the small business owner trumps other economic considerations.
